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BOD3

Mom is putting a Board of Directors together for my brothers foundation this month.  Finding the right mix of people and making sure they possess the passion to take the foundation to the next level is an interesting experiment.  It also takes time.

Speaking of time, it has been one year since my parents and I embarked on this crazy mission to build housing facilities for organ transplant patients and their caregivers.  And boy have we learned a lot!

It’s one thing to come up with a great idea.  It’s a whole nother thing to follow through and make it happen.  I’m confident in saying I speak on behalf everyone when I say ignorance is bliss.  Few people would get into something this complex and challenging if they knew what was going to happen from the start.

Mom and Dad have done a fantastic job and I’m so proud to not only be their son, but to part of the team.  They’re working hard and constantly out of their comfort zone (especially Mom).  The good Lord is putting her in a lot of situations that she’s never been in and she’s handling it with grace.

To wrap up what happened in our first full year, we got the 501(c)(3) taken care of, partnered with Enduring Hearts (a nonprofit focused on heart transplants), hosted our first fund raiser, raised capital through other means, begun building a national organ transplant network, I got into Brown University for my masters to study healthcare leadership, attended tons of meetings with people in the organ transplant space, traveled to NYC and Seattle to visit transplant houses like the ones we’re going to build, partnered with Piedmont Hospital in Atlanta to build our first one, created our website, and started the process of putting a Board together.

It hasn’t been easy.  Take the uncertainly and hard work out of the equation and you have a family that’s in a position to relive Jeffrey’s death on a regular basis.  I cried more last year than I did in the previous nine years combined.

I guess the old saying it right, “If it was easy, everyone would do it.”

Here’s to a BIG 2016!

Sincerely, The Graduate (at Brown)